The Guardian
by Stan Man With Big Red Plan
Summary: Born and raised on the mean streets of Omega, The Guardian has sworn to fight crime on the Citadel and bring justice to those who are not protected by C-Sec, and punish those who they ignore. Shrouded in mystery, no one has a truly accurate description of him except he wears an owl mask.
1. Chapter 1

**I got this idea a while back and now I'm finally getting around to this. It's probably just another case of me trying to quell writers block for all my other stories.**

Chapter 1: The Guardian Rises

"Give me all your money, suit rat!" The Turian mugger leveled a Blood Pack executioner pistol to a male Quarians' head.

"Please, can't we just be reasonable?" The victim shouted back at the criminal who was flanked by a Salarian and a Vorcha.

As for me, I was hanging in the rafters by my hands and feet loading a TASER XREP shell into an old SPAS-12 pump action shotgun. As the Quarian gave in and handed a credit chit to the Vorcha, I silently dropped down and safety rolled into one of the shadows. I almost tripped on the tails of my jacket as I landed, but months of training had prevented that from happening.

We were in a dimly lit section of Zakera with little witnesses and lots of places to hide. I was behind a vending machine selling candy of all types.

"This chit has almost no money in it!" The Vorcha screamed as he analyzed the contents of the device. In response he pulled out his own pistol and aimed it at the scared man. I took this as my cue and took aim. Before anyone could react a dose of 1.3 milliamps and 500 volts of electricity flowed through the Vorcha causing him to collapse to the ground suffering from severe spasms before losing consciousness.

I replaced the shotgun into the holster on my lower back, leaped from cover, and pulled an X2 Defender from it's holster on my thigh and delivered a 50,000 volt shock to the Salarian.

I placed the TASER back into its holster and grabbed the extendable titanium Bo staff from my back. I pressed the button of the grip to extend the weapon into its full 1.7m length. The Turian swung around trying to pistol whip me in the side of the head. I responded by lifting and swinging the staff down onto his arm breaking it at the elbow causing him to drop his gun.

Dropping down to the ground gripping his arm, I planted the staff into the ground, swung myself, and delivered a swift kick to the side of the head causing him to lose consciousness.

I pulled zip ties from the loops on the shoulders of my jacket and secured the hands and feet of the almost criminals. I pulled the chit from the pocket of the Vorcha, plugged it into my gauntlet and wired 10,000 credits directly into the device. I removed the chit and tossed it back to the Quarian who was shaking from the whole ordeal.

"Are you alright? What's your name?" I asked through my helmet's voice filter hidden under my mask. "Are you injured? Did your suit get punctured?"

"N-n-no. I'm fine. Thank you. I'm, Keelah, I'm Anslano. Anslano'Kane nar Qwib-Qwib." He stubbled to his feet. "That mask, is it of some sort of animal?"

"It's an owl. Humans see them as both signs of wisdom and protection. And death and destruction." I explained.

"Who are you?" He asked.

"I'm the Guardian." I responded as I threw an origami owl in the middle of the criminals which contained a tracking device for the police to follow. I climbed back into the rafters and made my escape.

When I was a kid, my parents would read me a story from 21st century Earth. It told the story of a intelligent race of owls from a post-apocalyptic world who had formed a great civilization, that to some did not exist.

On the island in which this civilization made its home there was a group of warriors called the Guardians. They all took an oath to protect the innocent and keep the peace. They swore to never wear a crown of gold or win glory. They were kind of like King Arthur's Knights of the Round Table.

I grew up on Omega (Yeah I know, best place to raise a family), that meant that I would witness, on average, three robberies, two muggings, a hit put out by Aria herself, and maybe cold-blooded murder.

As I got older, I realized that nothing was going to get better if you don't fight for it yourself. So I got to work.

I sewed Kevlar and ceramic disks into an old white jacket. I attached a hood with a prominent widow's peak at the openings' apex. I bought an old Quarian helmet from a junk dealer and mounted an owl mask on top of it. My Bo staff was custom and I had to pull some strings to get those TASERs. I sought out trainers to train me in things like Parkour and various martial arts.

I joined up with another group of vigilantes who ran on the station lead by a former Turian cop. I quit after three weeks as I didn't agree with their shot on sight policy of heroism. I later found out that all but the cop were killed in a turf conflict.

Realizing that I was probably next, I fled to the next major crime filled station, the Citadel.

"Despite increasing reports, C-Sec has yet to confirm the existence of the so-called Guardian." The hourly Citadel news broadcast announced.

"He saved my life." Another report announced with a video of a Quarian.

"That freak was seven feet tall and had… and had these giant wings and claws. you see." A witness claimed trying to mimic what he was describing.

"He's a hero." An Asari exclaimed on the streets.

"He's a menace to society. He has attacked criminals, civilians, and cops. He impedes justice and stops C-Sec from doing their jobs. He needs to be brought to justice." A Turian caller exclaimed on the radio.

"I think he's dreamy." A young Quarian girl told her friends.

"You see its clear that this so called "vigilante" has a clear Hero Syndrome. He needs to pick fights with people to sate his need for recognition and attention by putting himself into these situations." An Asari psychologist explained.

"On behalf of C-Sec and the Council. I would like to quell the fears of the public. There is no such thing as the Guardian." The commissioner of C-Sec told reporters.

**Leave a comment in the box below if you liked it. I will try to write more, but I can't guarantee it.**

**Allons-Y!**

**Professor What**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two: Underground

Mr. Kaplan was a middle aged human male who could not stand out amongst anyone. No matter who he was with or what species they were, Mr. Kaplan was one of those guys who could never be traced.

The Shadow Broker hired the guy 20 years ago due to the fact that he managed to steal pictures of an important political sex scandal and then sell them to the media because, quote, "I just wanted to see what would happen."

This caught the eye of the Shadow Broker and he was brought on his payroll as his personal political "socialite". The Broker would pull a few strings to get him into a major event. He'd snap a few pictures, shmooze the party goers a little bit, and leave before anyone knew that he wasn't supposed to be there.

I had intel that the guy was selling information on some corrupt cops running an illegal sex trade out of one of the wards. I needed to get it first.

Kaplan lived lavishly in a high class apartment on the Presidium. Everyday at 11:00 GST, he would leave his house to feed the waterfowl on the lake. I followed him by the rooftops until he got to an empty section in which I took aim with the grappling hook that I had recently installed on my gauntlet. I pressed the trigger on the lower half of my wrist which caused the launcher to release the the hook in a burst of Nitrogen gas which gripped onto his shirt.

With the activation of the internal motor, Kaplan was pulled up to where I was stationed. As he swung onto the roof, I placed my foot onto his chest to hold him in place.

"Who are you? What do you want?" He shouted in fear.

"A little bird told me that some girls were going missing and C-Sec was doing jack shit about it." I asked removing the cartridge from the my X2 to set it into drive stun mode. "You wouldn't know anyone who would… you know… have intel on this?"

"I don't know anything. It's Barla Von you want." He cried. "The data has yet to reach my hands."

"I have a device that will run 50,000 volts through your pathetic little body if you're wrong." I lowered myself closer to him and placed the X2 right next to his throat and pressed the trigger for the effect.

"I'm being serious."

"You better be." I let up on the pressure, but knocked him out before he could get away to tell the cops.

Barla Von entered his office on the Presidium, closed the door behind him, and turned on the lights. He turned around to see a man in white sitting at his desk with his leather boots placed on the table.

"Who are you?" He asked going to the hidden panel next to the door.

"You know who I am." I responded in a calm voice distorted by the helmet's systems. The Volus entered in a code into a hidden pad and a panel slid open. He pulled out a pistol and aimed at the intruder.

"If I shoot you now. I could make millions." He threatened. "C-Sec wants your head, and I can provide it for them." He pulled the trigger and nothing happened.

"Are you looking for this?" I asked lifting a thermal clip into view. "I know where you keep your gun."

"What do you want?" He backed up against a wall. "Take my money… anything… but don't kill me!"

"And why would I do that?" I calmly got up and went over to the broker. "One of your bosses workers just squealed on the fact that you have intel on an organic trafficking ring being run out of one of the wards."

"I may have some data."

"Since I don't have the time to scour every inch of this station to find it. You are going to hand over the data for free." I explained walking over to one of the terminals on the wall.

"I can't do that. The broker would not be very pleased." Barla exclaimed. Without his permission I jacked a data drive into the computer and began draining it of all the intel I needed and more.

"I thank you for your time. I do hope we can some more in the future." I mockingly bowed and exited the room.

The Turian guard exited the compound to have a smoke. I waited up in the rafters until he was out of range of the CCTV cameras and jumped on top of him. My foot was now on his chest and my knee in his mouth. I had my hand on his right hand to keep him from grabbed his gun.

He struggled a bit and placed his left hand on my thigh. "Scream and that hand becomes your good hand." I whispered to him. "What's going on inside?" I lifted my leg slightly.

"The auction." He coughed out.

"I would suggest a career change." I explained as I put my knee back in his mouth. "But that will be hard from a jail cell." I flipped him over and punched him beneath the cowl. A quick way to knock out a grown Turian man when you want to stay quite.

I went through his pockets and pulled a program from his Omni-tool. I uploaded it to mine in order to gain full access to the compounds servers. I ducked behind some crates and used the program to open up the door. I gave a small chuckle at the ease in which I had infiltrated the compound.

Veloria Ta'uric pushed open the back door into the slaver's compound and walked quietly to the window. She looked around the room checking the area for cover and how many guards were in there.

She wasn't supposed to be here. She was off her patrol for C-Sec, but when she heard rumors about the slave ring in the Wards that her superiors were ignoring, she needed to investigate and take care of things herself.

Humans, Asari, Drell, Turians, and very few Quarians were in the cages being guarded before they went up for sale. Her mandibles flared in anger. She drew her custom Karambit from a belt located at the base of her spine and proceeded to walk down a fogged glass corridor silently taking down two guards.

She came to an intersection where a human guard jumped out from cover with a pistol. She grabbed his arm with her left hand twisted it upward and sliced a tendon with her knife causing him to drop the gun. Veloria then threw the guard against a wall and cut his throat.

She looked up and saw a guard reaching for an intercom. She drew her M-3 Predator and assumed a Center Axis Relock stance. She made sure she brought one that couldn't be traced back to her if something happened to it. As he pressed the button to call his superiors, the cop shot him five times.

She rushed to the stairs ignoring the cries from the prisoners, she would come back to get them later. As she reached the main floor, lit in purple light with various strobes suggesting this place was once a nightclub, guards began rushing around. They were ignoring her, but focusing their fire on one of the upper levels.

The female Turian looked up to see a flash of white flinging everywhere on a catwalk methodically taking out seven different guards one after the other. Waisting no time, she switched her pistol from her right to left hand and dispatched three guards to her right.

Some young Salarian made the stupid move of trying to make a grab for her gun, causing her to draw the weapon back to press firmly against her stomach and fire twice into the creatures belly and then raising her pistol into the standard angled form of the C.A.R. system and shooting him again in the head.

She popped her heat sink and loaded a new thermal clip before engaging the enemy again.

The cop soon rushed the stairs, taking out three more guards as she approached the catwalk where she saw the mysterious shape. As she patrolled the catwalk, she noticed an open door that seemed to lead into a nicely furnished office. She took cover on the wall outside the door and listened for any movement inside.

"Tell me who runs this ring or I swear I'll smash your other kneecap." A low modulated voice called out from inside the office.

"I don't know! We only communicated through text." Another voice called out in pain. There soon was the familiar sound a bone breaking and a scream of pain.

"Species, location, something!" The modulated voice came again.

"I think she's an Asari on the Presidium, just please stop!"

"Well that narrows it down to a few thousand." Suddenly he stopped and looked around. Veloria knew she had to enter the room. She prepped her pistol in her left hand and turned right and leveled her gun at eye level only to see a white clad figure in a mask pointing his own weapon at her face one handed. She recognized him as the vigilante all over the news, the one C-Sec denied knowledge of.

"I thought holding your gun sideways was impractical." He said in a smooth yet synthetic voice. She looked him over, at 6'5" she was on the smaller side of Turians, yet he was an inch shorter than her.

"Under the authority of Citadel Security, you are under arrest for the act of Vigilantism." She extended her pistol to use the barrel to hit at the figure throat. He reached up and grabbed the weapon and forced it from her. He swung the pistol out and ejected the clip before tossing it away.

"You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say or do can and will be used against you in a court of law." She explained while throwing a left hook at the vigilante's head.

"Well we're on the side, but you're the one with the gun." He explained grabbing her arm and flipping her over his shoulder. "You didn't have to kill them."

"You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you." She continued getting onto her feet.

"You've got spunk kid. I like that." The vigilante stated flipping over the Turian's shoulders and rushing out of the office.

The next day, Officer Ta'uric sat at her desk in the local precinct she was stationed at. The news feeds were blaring the report of the trafficking ring that had seemed to have been stopped by the Guardian, but evidence suggested another person had also taken part in the raid as there seemed to be two points of entry and some of the criminals were unconscious while others were dead.

Suddenly her Omni-tool pinged with a message. The source was redacted, but she opened it anyway with all intentions of deleting it. She was surprised on who sent it.

The message was backdropped by a picture of an Earth Barn owl in flight with the text,

_Ms. Ta'uric, _

_It seems we have made the news. I would like to meet. There are some run down apartments down in Tayseri Ward that were too damaged to repopulate after the Reaper. Meet me in three days, and come alone._

_Sincerely,_

_Your Friendly neighborhood Owl_

Veloria deleted the message and got up. It was time for her lunch break and she knew of a place nearby that sold Dextro equivalents of Japanese food that her boss introduced her to. She remembered the salesman pitching his ramen soup as a delicacy, but she later read that it was mostly enjoyed by poor college students.

As she sat down with her bowl Dextro fried rice, she began to consider the Guardian's offer. She knew that teaming up with him could ruin her career, but with him, she could bypass all the legal red tape that kept her and others back.

She couldn't wrap her head around this for now, so she leaned back in her chair and watched as the civilians passed by ignorant of the underworld around them.

"It seems that you and I share the same concerns of the people around us." A male voice called out from behind her. She turned to see a tall human male in a green sweatshirt with the sleeves rolled up sit down across from her. He had short black hair spiked up at the ends.

"What do you know?" She asked.

"I know some duct rats." He said. "By the way, I'm Coryn Hoole." He said extending his hand.

"Detective Veloria Ta'uric." She responded reaching out her own hand and shaking his.

"If you ever need intel from the ducts, call me. Here's my card." He pulled a white piece of thin card board from his reddish brown cargo pants handed it to her.

_Coryn Hoole_

_Electrical Engineer_

_T'Vani Apartments, Tayseri Ward_

"But aren't these apartments abandoned?" She asked before she noticed the human had left without a sound.

**Man this was a hard chapter to write. I'm sorry for not updating for a while. It's just I just began a RWBY fanfic and I became so caught up in it, I ignored all my other stories.**


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